I researched “Excuses not to work out”. I thought, mmmm, there are so many articles about excuses not to work out. Why would I want to write another blog about this topic??????

Because mine is personal.  I feel like anyone can write a blog about a well-researched topic. Anyone can take a survey and write the results. Anyone can come up with scientific verbiages- like neurotransmitters such as dopamine, serotonin, and endorphins. Which, by the way, are increased with exercise, because moving the muscles, increases blood flow through the heart and, viola, increased neurotransmitters.

Oops, I got all geeky on you.  Anyway, I read a few of these blogs and thought, wow, these are so true for the public, but not for me. And as I read them, they were so factual and scientific and mindful, but not all of them were helpful to me.

I know a lot of the science behind the benefits of working out.  I am a personal trainer and exercise fanatic. With that said I have never heard myself say, “get up girl and get those neurotransmitters going”.  Never have I thought that each week I don’t work out, I’m losing percentages of cardio fitness.

I have been recently working out on a very consistent schedule.  I’m more energized, more positive about my body image, and feel much stronger.  This morning while I was running, I was thinking about what changed. A few months ago, this girl had no ambition to do much of anything.  Working out was not even on the radar.

What did change?

I’m still sleeping the same amount, I’m still eating the same, I still have the same workload, and my body feels better than it ever has.

What was my motivating factor to get out of bed and workout?

This is what I came up with.  I have no excuses.   This morning, this past week, past month, I’ve literally not even thought of coming up with any excuses not to workout.

This made me think. I am going to share all my excuses for not working out with you. No research, no surveys, just the nitty-gritty of my excuses. But wait, there’s more. After I compile my top 10 excuses, I am then going through what I do to walk away from them and get my bootie working out.

I am very passionate to help people get fit and stay fit.  I’d love to help everyone combat their excuses as I have. I also would like to help myself stay excuse-free. I’m sure this blog is going to help me, just as much as I hope it helps you.  Just in case an excuse falls in our lap we can reread this and figure out how I walked away from it.

Call it my Combat Plan for Excuses.

Cassi’s number 1 excuse not to work out.  I’m tired.

If anyone should have the excuse of being tired, it would be me. I am up by 5 every morning, in bed between 9-10. I sleep very lightly and between me and the puppy there are so MANY potty breaks. I feed horses, haul hay, clean stalls, water horses, feed pets, work out, ride 6-8 horses a day, pay bills, clean my house, mow the yard, clean up the yard, fix fences, fix house breakdowns, set up judging, clinics, shows, and oh yeah, travel almost every weekend to work.  I should have the excuse, “I am tired”, right?

I have literally said to myself laying in bed, “Exercise gives you energy. Where can I find the energy I need to work out?”  It’s real folks.  My head has this argument lots.

Here’s what I have done to keep myself energized.  I set a goal each month. Last month it was to run 100 miles for the Cancer Society.  This month it is to run 3 miles in the fastest time I can.

I’m going to say it again.  I set a goal for each month.

Cassi’s number 2 excuse not to work out. I don’t have the time.

Time…. I’d ramble on again about everything I do, but I’ll spare you the time.  Everybody has time to work out. EVERYBODY. I have this device called a cell phone.  I timed myself on it one day.  Here’s what I came up with.

40 minutes on Facebook/Instagram

15 minutes taking and editing puppy pictures

20 minutes reading about Kanya West and Kim Kardashian’s breakup.

15 minutes catching up on the Royals

That is 1 hour and 30 minutes I could have been exercising. I know I am not the only one who gets trapped by their phone. I made myself a promise to take 10 minutes in the morning to check out happenings on the web, and 10 minutes at night before bed.  Guess what.  I’ve been working out every morning since my promise to myself.

I’ll say it again. I promised myself only 20 minutes a day to do mindless things on my phone to free up more time to work out.

Cassi’s number 3 excuse not to work out. I’m too depressed.

Depression is terrible.  My favorite thing people always ask me when I say I’m depressed is, “Why?”. That is what depression is.  We don’t know why we are depressed, and therefore that makes us more depressed. I’ve fought it all my life. I finally swallowed my pride and got on a prescription for it.  I just couldn’t waste any more of my energy fighting a chemical battle I couldn’t win.

Depression is so powerful. There are tons of blogs about beating it, living with it, and ways to help your habit change. I’ve read them. When I took the time to face my own depression, I learned a few things. I figured out when it hits me the most is in the morning. I needed something to help me get through that. I needed to feel joy. Things that make me feel joy: I love quotes, I love goals, and I love the business I am building. I took these three things and built myself a vision board that hangs right next to my bed. Bamm

I wake up every day and read my board. It inspires me, it helps me see the happiness in my life, and brings me peaceful joy.

I will say it again. I took three things I love, put them on a poster, and read it every morning when I have discovered depression hits me the most.

Cassi’s number 4 excuse not to work out. My back hurts.

Yep, pain is not a motivator. I’ve discovered for me the more I move the better my back feels. I’ve also discovered I love stretching. Moving and stretching is the best thing for me when I feel pain.

I’ll say it again, moving and stretching is the best thing for my painful body.

Cassi’s number 5 excuse not to work out. I drank too much the night before.

Again, folks, this one is real. I am not going to sugarcoat what I am about to spill. I come from a long line of drinkers.  I’m attracted to drinkers. I love to drink. I’ve tried drinking less, but I just have no turn off the valve.  I drink when I’m happy, depressed, the weather is nice, the weather is bad, I have money, I am broke, I love my job, I don’t love my job, I am in a relationship, or not.  I think you see my story.

So, I’ve made myself another promise to not drink for a month. I want to promise myself to not drink for 6 months, but as I discovered like the excuse of being tired, I can only commit each month.

I’ll say it again, I promised myself not to drink for a month.

Cassi’s number 6 excuse not to work out. I have too much to do today.

“Cassi”, I say to myself.  “Everybody has too much to do today.”

Make yourself a list. Lists. They rock. What I have discovered about myself is when I make a list it is so exciting to cross things off.  The other thing is, if it didn’t get crossed off today, it goes top of the list tomorrow.

I’ll say it again, I make a list every day to see how much time I do have to work out.  Anything I don’t get done today can get done tomorrow.  Bamm

Cassi’s number 7 excuse not to work out. My bed, cats, and dogs are holding me hostage, and I can’t break free.

Okay, this one is a tuff one.  My pets are my family. My pets are also my motivators.  No puppy wants to sleep in.  No cat will let you off the hook if it’s 6 am and there’s no food in their bowl.  I am motivated to be the best animal mom ever.  This includes me staying healthy and fit.

I’ll say it again, the hostage bed is filled with creatures that need me to stay healthy and fit.

Cassi’s #8 excuse not to work out. It’s been so long, what’s another day?

This one is common for me. Here’s why.  I workout all day long.  My fit bit says I walk on average 35,000 steps. That’s insane.  It’s so easy to talk myself into this one.  Here’s what I do to combat it. I read solutions for excuses 1-7. Easy peasy. Bamm

Cassi’s #9 excuse not to work out. My home gym, which I walk 35 steps, to is dirty.

I’m crazy about cleanliness. My solution for this excuse is to incorporate cleaning as part of the workout.  If you sweep, dust, and wash mirrors with a sense of urgency you’d be surprised how much your heart rate goes up.

Cassi’s #10 excuse not to work out. Who cares if I do, or I don’t work out?

Who does care? I’m not working out for anyone else. Am I? No, the answer is no.

But I care. I care about how I feel, I care about taking care of myself, I care about being here as long as I can be for my critters, I care about ME.  My solution for excuse #10 is I constantly remind myself I am important.  Here are my two quotes I repeatedly say to myself when excuse #10 tries to keep me from working out:

“Expect more from your opinions about yourself, and less about opinions from others”

“Putting me first isn’t selfish, it’s my necessity”

Repeat 10 times.

I’m sorry it took so long to get to the real point of my excuses not to workout blog.

Everybody has excuses for not working out. What helped me the most is discovering my own excuses and then coming up with my own way to combat them.  You should make your own list of excuses and work on your own plan to combat them.

For now, I am so grateful I took the time to compile this list.  If ever any excuses not to work out wander my way I have a combat plan.

Hello consistent workouts, you sexy thing. And goodbye excuses.